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SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: A scooterist crosses Second Street in downtown San Jose, Calif., in front of a new 27-foot long mural on San Fernando Street celebrating the 25th anniversary of the SAP Center, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

San Jose Sharks in-arena host John Root, right, introduces Jeff
McMillan, left, and Gary Musgrave, center, who make up the art team
The Draculas at the unveiling of their new mural on Thursday, Aug. 29,
2019. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Gary Musgrave of the muralists called the Draculas, adds detail to a shark image while completing a 27-foot long mural on San Fernando Street in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. The mural celebrates the 25th anniversary of the SAP Center and some of the athletes and artists who have performed there. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Gary Musgrave hands a paint brush to Jake Kazakos and Jeff McMillan in a cherry picker as they complete a mural on San Fernando Street in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. The mural celebrates the SAP’s 25th anniversary. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Pedestrians walk in downtown San Jose, Calif., in front of a new mural on San Fernando Street celebrating the 25th anniversary of the SAP Center, Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Life reflects art as a jet landing at Mineta San Jose International Airport flies over a new mural on San Fernando Street in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Jake Kazakos, Jeff McMillan and Gary Musgrave, a group of muralists known as the Draculas, complete a 270-foot long mural on San Fernando Street in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. The mural celebrates the SAP’s 25th anniversary. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA – Aug. 28: Jake Kazakos and Gary Musgrave work next to a picture of rapper E-40 while completing a large mural on San Fernando Street in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019. The mural incorporates artists that have performed at the SAP Center as it celebrates its 25th anniversary. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)

It’s hard to depict every major sports event and music legend that’s been part of the 25-year history of SAP Center, even in a mural that’s 270 feet wide like the one just completed on San Fernando Street in downtown San Jose.

“We work really hard to make sure we bring a wide variety of shows to SAP Center — and we live in an extremely diverse community so we need to have a diverse array of events,” said Doug Bentz, SAP Center’s vice president of marketing and digital. “So this mural really needed to represent that wide array of events.”

There are, of course, San Jose Sharks, with a trio of hockey players who appear to be skating out the mouth of a real Great White. The mural also depicts figure skating champion Kristi Yamaguchi, Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, and huge musical acts Adele, E-40, and Elton John. James Hetfield of Metallica is depicted from the neck down, the assumption being that his guitar and stance would be more recognizable than his face.

And there’s also a headless Norteño musician with a cowboy hat and an accordion. While this figure could be taken to represent San Jose’s own Los Tigres del Norte, the art team said both the band and the genre is so popular they didn’t want to depict any single member. There are also silhouettes of fans, an image of the arena itself, and a 747 jetliner flying overhead — a nod to SAP Center’s location in the SJC flight path. Clouds, a few 1970s-looking shooting stars and “San Jose!” in a funky typeface complete the picture.

The work was done by JeffMcMillan and GaryMusgrave, a Southern California art team called TheDraculas (true to their name, they did most of their work late at night over the past two weeks). McMillan grew up in San Jose and has fond memories of SAP Center, where his dad took him to see Eric Clapton when he was a teenager.

“I left San Jose in 1999 to go to Los Angeles for school,” he said. “To come back 20 years later to do this thing is awesome. It’s like full circle.”

This mural is the second in recent weeks that SAP Center has sponsored, following Austrian artist Nychos‘ “Bleed Teal” mural on an apartment building near Whole Foods on The Alameda. Bentz, SAP Center’s marketing vice president, says there are more artistic partnerships planned in the near future by the arena and the team, though this one is meant to cap off a yearlong celebration of SAP Center’s silver anniversary, which concludes with a huge music festival Sept. 13-15 featuring Blake Shelton, Kings of the West and Maluma.

It was a real team effort for SAP, too. Empire Seven Studios brought in The Draculas, the Sobrato Organization provided space in the parking lot for the work and Digital Realty gave permission to use the wall, which runs the length of San Fernando between First and Second streets.

Ron Muriera, a member of the city of San Jose’s arts commission, said it’s refreshing to see the private sector contributing to the beautification of the city through art. “It’s not just about celebrating the SAP Center’s 25th anniversary, it’s helping bring some vibrancy to the city and the downtown core,” he said. “It makes me glad to see that there are other sectors that have been contributing to art in our public spaces.”

The seats on the east side of CEFCU Stadium have been removed inpreparation for construction of a new Football Operations Center forSan Jose State. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)

DIFFERENT VIEW AT CEFCU: The crowd at San Jose State’s football opener Thursday night — a 35-18 win over Northern Colorado — was announced at 13,000-plus (including former NFL wide receiver and Spartans alum James Jones walking the sideline). But it sure felt like more, probably because the bleachers on the east side of CEFCU Stadium have all been removed, leaving a huge expanse that’s covered with turf in the center and dirt wings on either side.

One immediate benefit of having the “grassy knoll” instead of bleachers is that it puts the raucous student section on the same side as everyone else. And Thursday night that created an electric atmosphere that’s been rare at the stadium in recent years. Of course, it helps when the home team, led by quarterback Josh Love, scores five touchdowns and has Krazy George there to rile up the crowd with his drum.

The remodeling is actually part of a huge project to add a Football Operations Center to the east side of the stadium, along with new seating for spectators. After the Spartans’ 2019 season is over, the hill and scoreboard infrastructure will also be removed so construction can really start. Look for the whole project to wrap up in four or five years.

BIG DAY FOR CANCER CAREPOINT: Hats off to Cancer CAREpoint board member Sandi Frazer, auction chair Lynne Fisher and the rest of the volunteers who put together the non-profit’s annual Garden Party fundraiser on Aug. 25. A record turnout of 520 guests helped bring in more than $1 million for its mission of providing free, non-medical support services for cancer patients and their families.

Held at the Monte Sereno home of Pamela and Stanford Atwood, the event included a sponsor reception with a keynote by Dick Levy, a 48-year veteran in the health care industry and former CEO of Varian Medical Systems.

CHOICE WORDS:CaroleHolzgrafe of the American Association of University Women noted that my column on a women’s equality rally in downtown San Jose on Monday used the term “suffragette.”

“Please note that the respectful term for those brave souls who fought to win the right to vote for women is ‘suffragist’ not ‘suffragette,’ ” she wrote. “The extension ‘ette’ often means small or less important and is seen by many as a term of denigration.”

With the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment coming in 2020, she suggested I pass the advice around the newsroom for future stories, but I figured it’s a good enough point to share with everyone.